Somebody Save Him
DR. KILDARE MOVIE COLLECTION (1938-42) Although not the first actor to don the scrubs of Max Brand’s idealistic young intern, Lew Ayres owned the role for a series of superlative medical dramas that cemented in place all the ample talent that had long been on display, starting with All Quiet on The Western Front (1930). Ayres’ costar, the needs-no-superlatives Lionel Barrymore, who, as the grumpy, garrulous and brilliant Dr. Leonard Gillespie found a regular supporting role that was roomy enough to showcase his prodigious gifts that would continue in a series of flicks even after Ayres departed the title role.
- YOUNG DR. KILDARE (1938) Self-made son of a country doc, Jimmy Kildare graduates medical school and heads for the big city to find his destiny.That is if he can find a way to pass muster for Dr. Gillespie, the most difficult diagnostician in medicine. Thankfully, he has a wrench wielding orderly in his corner (Nat Pendleton).
- CALLING DR. KILDARE (1939) Dr. Gillespie tosses the naif doc Kildare into the deep end of the medical pool, away from Blair General to an outpatient clinic. But the waters run deeper than Gillespie suspected, thanks to a glam-moll (Lana Turner) with her sights on Jimmy. Good thing Gillespie set Kildare up an undercover nurse (Laraine Day)! With Nat Pendleton.
- THE SECRET OF DR. KILDARE (1939) Dr. Gillespie’s condition worsens while he seeks a cure for pneumonia. Jimmy tries to aid him while treating a blind woman (Helen Gilbert) who may not be blind. With Lionel Atwill.
- DR. KILDARE’S STRANGE CASE (1940) Jimmy comes up against competition for the heart of nurse Mary in the person of brain surgeon Gregory Lane (Sheppard Strudwick). But the scalpel jockey has problems of his own, and he and Kildare get teamed up to solve a medical mystery that could prove a man’s salvation — or damnation.
- DR. KILDARE GOES HOME (1940) Dr. Kildare returns to the country when his father collapses from overwork.
- DR. KILDARE’S CRISIS (1940) Mary’s brother (special guest star Robert Young) suffers from seizures, and the condition could be congenital. Do Mary’s genes carry the same curse?
- THE PEOPLE VS. DR. KILDARE (1941) Jimmy and Mary’s roadside jaunt is interrupted by a horrific accident and Kildare must operate without benefit of hospital or sterile conditions. When the figure skating patient (Bonita Granville) loses the use of her limbs, the malpractice case could end Kildare’s career. Red Skelton takes up the disorderly orderly duties from Nat Pendleton and Tom Conway lends a hand as Blair General’s legal eagle.
- DR. KILDARE’S WEDDING DAY (1941) The staff and docs of Blair General enter into a conspiracy to make Mary and Jimmy’s nuptials the most perfect day ever. What could stand in their way?
- DR. KILDARE’S VICTORY (1942) Dr. Kildare comes to aid of a young intern and nurse who run afoul of the Byzantine regulations regarding hospital territories and patient pick up. Ann Ayars guests as the deb at the heart of the conflict.
SPECIAL FEATURE: Unaired 1961 pilot for DR. KILDARE TV series staring Lew Ayres – never before seen – co-starring Robert Redford!
Peace, Love and Laughter
THE JIMMY STEWART SHOW COMPLETE SERIES (1971-72) At the dawn of the Seventies, James Stewart made a rare sojourn into the world of Situation Comedy on NBC. His gift for comedy, on grand cinema display since the dawn of his career, made him a congenial fit for the familial world of episodic comedy. Stewart plays Professor James Howard, an anthropologist struggling to make sense of the generation gap with his college students and just plain struggling to make sense of his own family. Jim and wife Martha (Julie Adams) are busy raising an eight-year-old, as is their twenty-nine-year-old first born, Peter (James Daly) and his wife, Wendy (Ellen Geer). And “Uncle Teddy” (Dennis Larson) is sure to demand “the proper respect” from his five-day-older nephew, Jake (Kirby Furlong). It’s a good thing Jim has a Nobel Prize-winning best friend, chemistry professor Dr. Luther Quince (John McGiver) to help make sense of the chaos, especially after a house fire forces Peter’s family to move in with Jim’s! Ginchy guests-stars include Cesar Romero, Beaulah Bondi (reprising her frequent stints as a Stewart’s mom), Gloria Stewart, Kate Jackson, Will Geer and Vincent Price as famed art expert, Vincent Price. 24-Episode, 3-Disc Collection.
Magnificent Monogram Trio of Heroes
MONOGRAM COWBOY COLLECTION VOLUME SEVEN (1945-52) Saddle up your disc player and get ready to ride with a steel-eyed trio of Monogram Heroes!
Get set for some saddle-bustin’ wild west action, taking a ride alongside three of Monogram’s most wanted: two-fisted Johnny Mack Brown, cowboy crooner Jimmy Wakely and lash master Whip Wilson. Johnny Mack takes on desperadoes with co-star Raymond Hatton, then pairs up with Jimmy Ellison for a duo of duelers. Next up Jimmy Wakely serenades us through a pair of pistol plays. Finally Whip Wilson cracks his way through a crisp quartet of oaters. This 3-Disc, 9-Movie round-up includes:
- TRIGGER FINGERS (1946) Johnny Mack answers the call when blacksmith Ray Hatton’s boy’s trigger finger gets him framed for murder. Co-starring cowboy queen Jennifer Holt.
- WHISTLING HILLS (1951) Johnny Mack pairs up with Jimmy Ellison to solve the mystery of a spectral series of stage coach robberies. With Noel Neill.
- MAN FROM THE BLACK HILLS (1952) In this go-round Johnny and Jimmy face off against a Wild West take on Martin Guerre, as Jimmy discovers a stranger has been posing as his long lost self.
- SADDLE SERENADE (1945) Jimmy Wakely leads of trio of white hats with Lee “Lasses” White and John James, as rancher take on a gang of deadly jewel thieves from the dreaded East.
- ACROSS THE RIO GRANDE (1949) Jimmy Wakely and Dub “Cannonball” Taylor intercede for a pair of siblings (Reno Browne and Riley Hill) whose Pa was killed thanks to a smuggling ring.
- GUNSLINGERS (1950) In this oater outing, Whip and Andy ride to rescue of a group of ranchers facing a larcenous land-grab from the villainous Ace Larrabee (Douglas Kennedy). With Sarah Padden.
- SILVER RAIDERS (1950) Whip goes undercover to bust a band of silver smugglers, but when they snatch a senorita (Patricia Rios), Whip must risk discovery. With Andy Clyde, Leonard Penn and Virginia Herrick.
- ARIZONA TERRITORY (1950) Whip goes undercover to bust a band of counterfeiters for US Marshall pal Andy Clyde.
- LAWLESS COWBOYS (1951) This entry updates the action to the then-contemporary 1950s West and sees ex-Texas Ranger Whip taking on a rodeo gambling ring, aided by rodeo rider Jim Bannon and crusading newspaperman Fuzzy Knight.
NOTE: These DVDs are Manufactured on Demand (MOD); to order, fans must visit The Warner Archive Collection or WB Shop.com